Becoming Fools for Christ

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Precisely because the clown is so childlike and unthreatening, he invites confidences. In a clown's presence people feel free to admit how vulnerable they are, how much they need help. "We've seen some remarkable things happen in mental health centers, where people previously unable to trust another human being have responded to a clown," Peckham told TIME Correspondent Steven Holmes. The Holy Fools also find that when it comes to liberation the clown costume works both ways. Dressed as clowns they feel free to engage in behavior that would normally be beneath their dignity, even acutely embarrassing.

As a disarming adjunct to ritual, clowning can be dramatically effective. It also has broad usefulness in therapy and pastoral work. But in a country that tends to turn everything into show business, anyway, it has some dangers and drawbacks. In liturgy it may be inappropriate to the solemn mysteries of Christian teaching. Besides, as Shaffer warns, a clown for Christ may get lost in show biz, forgetting that the message is what matters. Adds Peckham, unwittingly echoing what the clowns of the Middle Ages learned: "It is very tempting just to be in the spotlight, to have applause."